Friction draft-gear for railway-cars



J. F. OCONNOR. v FRICTION DRAFI GEAR FOR RAILWAY CARS. APPUcATloN. mfp JUNE 6. 1919.

1,398,704 Patented Nov. 29, 1921.

@fi-f7 Fg Z SQ y Ja/vLW/z/zar Y plan 'v the rear stop members UNITED s'rarizsjl PATENT oFFicE.

`:rOIIiv r. OOONNOR, or OII'IOAGO, ILLINOIS, Assiorivoii To WILLIAM ier. MINI-ia, or

1 CHAzY, New YORK. l

rIc'iIoN n ItArfrfGEAIt ron itiiiImviiv-oArts.

Application mea June e, 1919. serial No. 302,256.

To all whommay concern:

Be it known that I, JOHNF. citizen of the United States, vresiding at Chicago, in the county of Cook and, State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Friction Draft- Grears for Railway-Cars, of' which the 'fol-- lowing is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being vhad to thel accompanying drawings,-forming a part of this specification. 1

My invention relatesto improvements infriction draft gearsfor railway cars. The object of myfinv'ention is top-rovide a simplefand efficientv draft gear. l v Inthe drawings forming 'a' partof this speciiication, Figure` 1 isa horizontal lplan showing'thefdr'aft sills and stops with the draw bar and other elements `of the draft; rigging mounted therein and shown in top view. Fig. 2 is a cross section taken on line 22 of Fig.1.' Fig. l3 is a perspective view ofone of the friction elements'.

Referring' to the drawings, the numerals 10-10 indicate draft, sills suitably spaced apart and havingv secured to the inner faces thereof the front stopinembers 11-11 and 12-12 A draw bar is indicated at 13 having attached thereto a yokev 114, which is adapted to surround the followers Vand;icompression-resistingv elementshereinafter more fully described. .14' indicates 'a vf ront'ffo'llowerg; 15 a rear fol-V lower;v 16 a supporting vplate adapted to1 hold the parts in their position betweenthe-J sills and secured toi the draftsills by "suitable means-as, for instance, the -ib 17-17 The compressionresisting elements include the following' devices mounted bef. tweenv the frontv and rea-r followers: The" friction elements 18; thespring elements '19,- and the-lateral followers 20; The fr'iction elements 18 consist of the counterfpartfront' and rear elements- 21 and 22,` respectively.V The fr ontelement 21,'is seated against the. frontl follower-1 4 and the-rear element22 against the rear follower 15. -Each ofthese. elements has an 'angular friction f aceu23 adapted to engage against anadjacent friction face of one of the intermediate .friction elements hereinafter more fully`described. The intermediate friction elements comprise a plurality, -Y ypreferably .-two. members,

OCONNOR, a

speciation or Lettersratent.

said lateral `followers olts! PateiitedNov; 29,

counterpartsof eachother, one of whichis shownin perspective of Fig. 3 of the drawings. The said elements are oppositely arranged, a-s shown in-Fig. 1 of the drawings, the front elementhaving a friction face 24 engaging the adjacent friction face 23 of the front element21, and the rear intermediate element having a friction face 25 adapted to.

engage the friction tion element 22. kEach of the intermediate elements is provided with the coacting friction faces 26 and 27 It will benoted that all of the friction elements are hollow, liav ing vclosed and b ttoms 3 1 and 32, and that the inter-l engaging Yfriction faces between saidele -sso-- ments 'are upon the sides thereof.

face'23 of the rear fric-f.

ends 29 and 30 and closed tops;

ciated with the saidfriction elements are the 1 lateral followers-.BB-and 3&1. These followers extend along the inner lateral walls of the friction elements gagement therewith. g 'At one end of each of portion orshoulder adapted to secure the same ina fixed position in referencel tov one of the end friction elements or its adj acent,

endifollower-ffor instance, in Fig. l-of thel and have frictional enis, provided an off-set drawings the upper lateral follower is fixed in its position with 4reference to the front friction element 21 and the lower lateral followeriis Vfixed in its pos`tionin reference to the rearV friction element.

A series of mounted within; the friotionfelements' and betweenthelateral followers. In the partrated in Vthe drawings, -these springs 19 are fourjinnumber, there being one Vfor each of thefriction elements-employe'd.l

On'forward movement of the' front follower 14' from retreating by lthe 11 yandthe yoke will vdraw lowerlforwardly, compressing the .fricticular embodiment of'myinvention illus.-l

front stop members1 tion elements between-thefront, andv rear followers, causing the' yrear 'friction element to move laterally vin :one directiony and the fronti frictiony element to 1 move laterally in The front interinathe opposite direction. diate friction' element willmove laterally inthe same direction Iastherear frictionlele.

ment., and tli'erear. intermediate lfriction ele'- ment will move laterally in the same direcf he draw bar, kwill be prevented,

- L 85 laterallyfarranged springs are center line of combination, front tion as the front friction element. During this movement, the friction will be generated between each of the end friction elements and their adjacent end followers. Also friction will be generated between the friction faces of the various friction elements and also there will .be-friction between the lateral followers and the adjacent internal friction faces of the various friction elements. It will be noted that one free end of each of the lateral position of the parts sufiiciently spaced apart from the adjacent end follower to permit the Vcompression of the parts between the end followers. During the movement of the parts just described, the laterallyarranged springs will tend to resist the approaching movement of the lateral followers toward each other and thus insure, in addition to the spring resistance, the frictional resistance of the various: interengaging parts. It will also Ybe noted Vthat the -laterally-arranged springs are positioned sufficiently apart to permit the approaching movement. of the end followers toward each other. On rearward movement of the draw bar, the rear follower l5 is prevented from retreating` by the rear stop members-'12, the

draw bar drives the front follower V14 rearwardly andthe action of the parts between the front and rear followers hereinbefore described will thereupon ensue.

I claim:

l. VIn a draft rigging for railway cars, in

combination,front and rear followers, a plurality of laterally-movable friction elements between said followers, a pair of lateral kfollowers within and common to all of said friction elements and springs mounted between said lateral followers.

2. In a draft rigging for railway cars, in combination front and rear followers; a plurality of hollow laterally movable friction elements interposed -between said 4'followers; and laterally arranged spring units within said friction elements, the number of said spring units equalizing the number of saidfri'ction elements. Y

`3. In a draft rigging for railway cars, in combination: front and rear followers, front and rear friction elements in engagement with said followers; intermediate friction elements, each 0f said friction elements being hollow and provided with a longitudinally arranged internal -friction face -latera1 followers within the friction elements frictionally engaging said faces thereof and slidable thereon ina direction parallel to the draft; and springs within the friction elements mounted between said lateral followers. Y 4, In a draft rigging for railway cars, in

and rear laterally-movable ,friction elements, Vintermediate opposed laterally-movable friction elements and followers is in normal l nism, the combination with a pair of end friction elements, thesame being of like construction but oppositely disposed; .cfa p air of oppositely disposed intermediate friction elements of like construction but differing in construction from the end friction elements, the intermediate friction elements vhaving frictional en agement with each other and with the eng -friction elements alongv surfaces all extendingat an angle less than a right angle relativel draft; a plurality o transversely arranged springs within the friction elements, one end friction element and one intermediate friction element moving laterally in the opposite direction to .the other end andl intermediate friction elements upon Arelative approach of the end friction' elements. i

6. In a draft lrigging vfor railway cars, front and rear followers, front and rear laterally-movable frictional Velements in engagement with the followers, intermediate laterally-movable frictional elements anda pair of lateral followers within and common to all springs mounted between the said lateral followers. v

7. In a draft rigging for railway cars, in combination, .front and yrear followers, front and rear oppositely moving frictional elements in engagement with the followers, intermediate oppositely moving frictional elements, a pair of lateral followers common to all of said friction elements yand springs between the lateral followers, said frictional to the center line of Lof the friction elements and 'followers and springs, kthe lateral followersV beingy in frictional engagement with the frictional elements and the frictional elements being in `sliding engagement with each other."` l

8. In a friction draft gear for .railway cars, in combination, front and rear oppositely moving friction elements, intermediate oppositely moving' friction elements, lateral followers passing vthough said 'frictional elements, and springs 'between said lateral, followers, one of said lateral followers being securedto the front frictional element andthe other lateral follower bein secured tothe rear frictional element.

9. In a friction draft gear for railway cars, in combination, front and rear oppositely moving friction elements, yintermediate ,oppositely movlng friction elements,

tional element and the other lateral follower being secured to the rear frictional element, the said lateral followers having frictional engagement with the friction elements.

10. In a friction shock absorbing mechanism, the combination with a pair of end followers; of end friction elements each having an outer friction face coperable with one of the followers and an inner friotion face extending at an angle less than a right angle to the line of relative movement of the followers; a pair of intermediate friction elements, each of said intermediate friction elements having friction faces on the sides thereof, said faces converging and each extending at an angleless than a right angle relatively to the line of relative movement of said followers, said intermediate friction elements being oppositely arranged and the end friction elements being also oppositely arranged; and a plurality of springs interposed between said friction elements.

11. In a friction shock absorbing mechanism, the combination of end followers relatively movable toward and from each other; of a pair of end friction elements oppositely arranged; a plurality of intermediate friction elements interposed between and frictionally coperable with each other and with the end frictionelements; a pair of longitudinally extending followers disposed within said friction elements and passing from one to the other; and a plurality of springs interposed between said longitudinally eX- tending followers.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 26th day of May, 1919.

JOHN F. OCONNOR. 

